Strawberry Compote Cake Filling

Hi guys! I hope you’re making my favorite Strawberry Cake! I use this delicious and easy strawberry filling to just about ANY cake. It stores really well in the fridge and freezer and I find it to brighten up any cake! Also, this compote can very easily be turned into a pineapple filling or a blueberry filling by changing the fruit. No, you don’t need to use frozen fruit all the time but it is fruit picked at the peak of freshness and typically costs less - which is why I enjoy using it more.

Ingredients

• Roughly 4 cups of frozen, sliced strawberries

• 1/2 cup sugar

• 3 tablespoon cornstarch

• 2 tablespoons water

• 2 tablespoon lemon juice

Instructions

1. In a medium pot, add the berries, sugar, and lemon juice and cook on a medium heat until the strawberries have thawed and the mixture is starting to simmer.

2. In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch and water until it is a smooth paste.

3. Add in the cornstarch mixture and stir until the mixture starts to thicken. Remove from heat and transfer compote to a seperate bowl. As you allow this compote to cool, it will get thicker.

4. Cover the compote with plastic wrap to prevent a skin forming on top of it and transfer it to the fridge until you’re ready to use it.

Strawberry Cake

This classic Strawberry Cake is exploding with strawberry flavor and is the PERFECT summer sweet treat! I like to bake this cake and load the insides with Fresh Strawberry Compote and Strawberry Easy Swiss Meringue Buttercream. The strawberry buttercream is my Easy Swiss Meringue Buttercream with 1/2 cup freeze-dried strawberries. If you want to customize this recipe by making it raspberry, you can easily do that by swapping out the freeze-dried strawberries and strawberry gelatin for freeze-dried raspberries and raspberry gelatin (I use Jell-O).

Quick note - I like to prepare the compote and the strawberry buttercream before I start the cake so those are ready to go when the cake has cooled.

Ingredients

Makes 3 6” cakes, 2 8” cakes, or 12-15 cupcakes.

• 2 sticks or 1 cup of unsalted room temp butter

• 1 1/2 cups sugar

• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

• 4 room temperature eggs

• 1/4 cup sour cream

• 3 cups cake flour or 2 3/4 all-purpose flour and 1/4 cup corn starch

• 1 tablespoon baking powder

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 1 6 oz strawberry gelatin

• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk

• 1/2 cup ground freeze-dried strawberries

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Start by creaming the butter and sugar together in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment for 3-4 minutes at medium-high speed until light and fluffy .

3. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the vanilla.

4. With the mixer on a low speed, add the eggs one at a time followed by the sour cream, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

5. Sift the dry ingredients - flour, the baking soda, baking powder, and strawberry gelatin in a separate bowl.

6. Ground the freeze-dried strawberries and set aside.

7. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the buttermilk into the mixer, mixing well in between additions. I add one heaping cup of dry ingredients to the mixer and follow that with 1/2 of the buttermilk.

8. Once all the dry ingredients and the buttermilk has been added, swipe the sides of the bowl with the spatula and mix or fold in the freeze-dried strawberries.

9. Prepare the cake pans by lining them with parchment paper and spraying with baking spray.

10. Add in the batter to about 3/4 of the pan and bake on the middle rack of the oven for 45-50 minutes. Oven baking times may vary. Test the center of your cake with a knife at the 40 minute mark to see if it comes out clean. When it does, place the cakes on a cooling rack for 2-3 minutes and cover the tops with plastic wrap to “steam” the cakes. This keeps the cakes moist.

11. Wrap cooled cake layers in plastic wrap and freeze until needed.

Vegan Royal Icing (Official Cookie Nite Recipe)

This icing recipe has reinvented the way I bake. Before using chickpea water as a replacement for egg white or even meringue powder, I was hesitant to believe that I could work with it successfully. I’ve since learned that vegan baking, in general, is not as difficult as it may seem and this particular recipe has been the one I use for every single cookie decorating class. Watch my Youtube tutorial on how i make this!

* Disclaimer* Chickpea brine has a very pungent smell once you open the can to extract the liquid from the can. This smell goes away once you begin mixing the icing and then is gone completely once you add vanilla.

Tools Needed: Stand mixer with a paddle attachment or a hand-mixer, spatula, & bowl.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup OR 4 fl oz strained canned chickpeas brine

• 4 1/2-5 cups powdered sugar

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

• 3 drops white food coloring (optional)

Instructions

1. Open a can of chickpeas, drain and strain the brine into a separate bowl. Save this brine for the recipe.

2. Measure 1/2 cup of brine into the mixer with the powdered sugar. Add the vanilla and salt.

3. Using a paddle attachment, turn the mixer on low to combine the ingredients.

4. Once combined, increase speed to medium-low and continue beating for a few minutes until thick like toothpaste.

5. Scrape the side of the bowl, add the white food coloring and continue mixing for a few seconds.

6. To thin icing to a “flooding consistency”, add a tablespoon of water at a time until it is at the desired consistency.

7. Place icing in a container fitted with plastic wrap over the icing and a lid and store in fridge for up to 5 days.

Helpful tips

1. To learn more about “flooding consistency” and other icing consistencies for Royal Icing, refer to this handy guide from Semi Sweet Mike https://www.semisweetdesigns.com/blog/illustrated-guide-royal-icing-consistencies

2. Royal icing is best used the day that you need it but can also be placed in the freezer or fridge to preserve it’s life.

3. If the icing appears separated, often times you can mix it with a spatula back to life or massage the icing bag to incorporate it together.

4. Chefmaster food coloring is my choice for coloring icing and can be found on Amazon.

Yeast Doughnuts

These doughnuts take anywhere from 4 hours to overnight to prepare! It is important to make sure all of your ingredients are room temperature. I suggest letting the doughnuts do their second proof overnight so that you can have freshly fried doughnuts in the morning with coffee. Yum!

Makes 12 doughnuts

Prep time: About 4 hours

Tools needed: Doughnut cutter, tongs, wire rack, candy thermometer.

Ingredients

1 packet Instant Yeast (1/4 oz)

2 tablespoons warm water

1/2 teaspoon sugar

3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

3 egg yolks

4 tablespoons salted butter

1 cup milk

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

6 cups vegetable oil (for frying)

Directions

1. Allow the yeast to rise by mixing it with the warm water and half teaspoon of sugar in a bowl and setting it aside to triple in size - about 5 minutes. If it does not grow, check the expiration of the yeast and start again.

2. In a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, add all the remaining ingredients (flour, yolks, butter, milk, sugar, and vanilla) to the bowl and knead on a medium speed for 10 minutes.

3. Once the dough is finished kneading, you’ll notice it is sticky and forms into a ball. Take the dough out of the bowl and spray baking spray at the bottom of the bowl and place the dough back inside to proof for the first time.

4. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel and allow to proof for 1.5 to 2 hours in a warm area - dough will triple in size.

5. While the dough is proofing, cut 4”x4” parchment paper squares and place on a baking sheet.

6. Remove dough from bowl onto greased surface and roll into a sheet. The dough should be rolled to about 1/2 inch thickness or more depending on doughnut size.

7. Cut out doughnut shaped with cutter and place doughnuts on parchment squares on a tray.

8. Cover tray with a baking towel and allow to proof for a second time either overnight in the fridge (with the tray covered in plastic wrap) or for an hour or two on the counter until doughnuts double in size.

9. In a medium, deep casserole pan warm up the vegetable oil to 350 to 360 degrees F using a candy thermometer. The temperature should remain this temperature the whole time for even baking.

10. Place the doughnut into the oil, removing the parchment once it is in the oil with two forks or tongs. This prevents you from disrupting the shape. Fry for 45 seconds to a minute on each side or until golden brown, flipping the doughnut with tongs or two forks.

11. Transfer cooked doughnuts to a cooling rack and decorate with icing once cooled.

Doughnut Icing

Ingredients

3 cups powdered sugar

1 tablespoon corn syrup

1/4 cup whole milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

Food dye (optional)

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together all the ingredients until smooth and combined. Dip doughnuts and place on sprinkles or allow to dry on wire rack.

The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies EVER

This recipe yields 12 cookies.

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, unsalted and cubed

• 1 cup brown sugar

• 1/4 cup granulated sugar

• 2 eggs, room temperature

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 2 1/2 cups flour

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 2 tsp sea salt flakes, plus more for sprinkling

• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, plus more for tops

Instructions

1. Start browning the butter by placing butter cubes in a small pot and heating over a medium heat for 5-7 minutes.

2. Once butter starts to foam, continue watching until the foam has deflated and the butter is a light amber color.

3. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 20-30 minutes.

4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prep baking trays with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.

5. Beat cooled butter and both sugars together, using a beater attachment until smooth.

6. Add in eggs, one at a time, followed by the vanilla extract.

7. Add the flour, baking soda, and sea salt and continue beating on a low speed until combined into a smooth dough.

8. Pour in chocolate chips and mix until combined.

9. Using an ice cream scoop or two spoons, scoop out balls of dough, spaced evenly, on a baking sheet.

10. Flatten cookies with the palm of your hands, slightly, and add more chocolate chips on top for decoration (optional) and more sea salt!

11. Bake for roughly 12-15 minutes or until the cookies have a slightly golden brown edge. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool and enjoy!